Remaining Faithful

A piece of paper became a big leap of change to my life. But it still feels like the beginning.
It may be absurd considering that a lot of happenings already took place, twists and turns, ups and down.. Yet everyday still feels like the beginning of this journey called FAITH.

I heard that so many times before-- "I'm still starting" --most often by the mightily used men and women of faith who speaks to God's people in a pulpit. People who even are in their ministry for years, even decades. They humbly speak "I'm still starting".

I find myself in the same state today. I must say that I, too, am still starting. 

We are still starting because God is an inexhaustible God. We would need an eternity to fully fathom who He is. We would need forever to point by point perfectly become exactly like Jesus. We need multitudes of pruning, refinement, and sanctification to glory with Him and receive the full splendor of our rewards and inheritance-- And in this strenuous process, we are called to remain faithful. 

Everyday brings forth a new battle because again, this is a fallen world, and again, this flesh is subject to destruction. There were battles that were won in Christ Jesus and there were also battles that were lost because I took it all upon myself. There were a handful of 'retakes' and 'retests' I had to learn to be brought up to the will of God. After all, "the Lord disciplines whom He loves (Heb12:6)".

But on the contrary of the battle, this also opens the chance to choose Him. Our God, the God that we serve and the God whom we ought to know, just loves-- and I mean very much loves-- to be chosen.

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." -Deuteronomy 6:4-5

He is a God who "is one", he desires to be treated like none other. He desires our full affection, and this includes our will. This is why He gave us our freewill, this is why He allows an opposition to temporarily challenge us into battle so that we will choose Him.. a God who will fight the battle for us. Our Jehovah Nissi, the Lord our great banner of victory.

I heard a story once of a husband being asked about how he worked out his marriage happily, his response was: "I didn't just choose her the day I proposed, I choose her everyday". 

It has been a pleasure to embrace the beautiful, most comforting fact that Jesus, my Savior continues to stand His ground on pleading my cause from shedding blood on the cross to taking the mercy seat in heaven. The Scripture tells us that "Christ Jesus who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding [or pleading in behalf] for us (Romans 8:34)". Jesus chose me two thousand years ago and is still choosing me today. He is the perfect epitome of the husband in that heartwarming story. He is the Bridegroom of the new age to come after all.

"'Moreover, I will take from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp." 
-Jeremiah 25:10

This faithfulness burns a yearning in my heart to be also faithful to him. I think every believer who has tasted the goodness of the Lord would definitely have the same yearning as well.

Jesus chooses me everyday. I want to choose Him everyday too. Have we all felt this way?

We chose Jesus the day we chose life over death, the day we accepted Him as our Lord and Savior on the day of our salvation. But more to this, we continue to choose Him for the rest of our days. A true believer chooses Him not only once but everyday.

Just recently, I find myself praying these words often: "Jesus, make me true to you". The Spirit taught how being truthful to Him includes doing His will in my everyday life with no other side motives; not fame, not affirmation, not abundance nor any other self-seeking reasons, but only the motive of my love for God which I generated out of His love for me. 

Everyday indeed is a new beginning to choose Him. But all beginnings will never turn out to be just lost costs. We know that what awaits us is a great victory where we can finally see Him face to face as He says, "Well done, my good and faithful servant (Matt. 25:21)".

I pray these words speak to you as much as it speaks to me as I write, dear readers. I have had days when it is just undeniably hard to keep my feral thoughts and feelings captive. I had days when it is extremely difficult to maintain an attitude of surrender to the sovereignty of our God. But I would say that when we make Him our choice-- when we just utter and make a decisive choice to live for Him-- He steps in, He takes control, and He orders everything for good to those who love Him.

Everyday is a perfect day to choose Jesus. 

I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed Your ordinances before me. -Psalm 119:30